Eye Spy

Manila is home to the world’s oldest Chinatown located in Binondo.  It’s funny though that despite living in Metro Manila for almost 10 years now, I only got to visit Binondo last October. Apart from being a historic place, Binondo is perhaps is better know as a food lover’s heaven. One of the cheap dining options there where one can try a variety of Chinese dishes is Estero Fast Food Restaurant. I wondered if the  place is called “estero” because it is literally located near a big canal a.ka. estero in the Filipino language.

Apart from the variety of food options, I learned that part of the dining experience  in Estero is a battle with cats. The cats roam around the tables waiting for leftovers. Some of them were even aggressive enough to attempt an eye to eye contact with me. LOL.

https://www.instagram.com/p/9fTPSdKE3H/?taken-by=milaiski

Check out more entries for “Eye Spy” at Daily Post.

Enveloped

Hi everyone! How’s your summer (if you’re from the Northern Hemisphere) so far? Mine has been hectic and arid! I’ve been in delulu the past few weeks which pretty much explains my absence in the blogosphere. I turned a year older (yes, I’m now 26!), entertained a bunch of foreigners for a week due to an international conference our office is arranging, and completed my requirements for my post graduate diploma degree. Hurray! I am now graduating! Next semester, if I still have the drive, I will now enroll as a Masters Degree-proper student. One more year till that coveted XX X. XXX, MIH.

Anyway, for this week’s theme “enveloped”, I am sharing this interesting rock structure which I came across in one of the islands of El Nido:

Seems like I’m inside a fossil, enveloped by hollow structures of bones right? 🙂 Check out more entries at Daily Post.

Early Bird

As the saying goes, “the early bird catches the worm”. I say, the early bird catches beautiful sunrises. 🙂 Here are some astounding sunrises I was able to witness when I was in Dumaguete City:

These were taken from the city’s Roxas Boulevard which has a very good view of sunrises. Hence, I made sure to book at a hotel facing the boulevard. Imagine having this view every morning. 🙂

Check out Early Birds at Daily Post.

Refreshing

Wading in a stream.

Walking in a field.

Simple life is refreshing.

Check out “Fresh” theme at Daily Post.

The Walls of Ancient Seoul

The old walls of Gyeongbokgung Palace.

Living quarters at Changdeokgung Palace.

Getting lost in Bukchon village.

Stunning photos of “Walls” at Daily Post.

Reward

I am not into parties, branded bags, shoes, clothes, jewelry etc. etc. So, how do I reward myself?  TRAVEL!

Somewhere in El Nido.

As this quote says: “I would rather own little and see the the world than own the world and see little of it.” 🙂

In the outskirts of South Korea.

See how others define “Reward” at Daily Post.

Palawan and the Rule of Thirds

Of the basic photography techniques, the “rule of thirds” is my favorite. It’s one, if not, the only technique I bother to familiarize, practice, and painstakingly try to polish. If perfectly executed, it can bring a photo into a whole new dimension.

For this week’s photo challenge, I did not take new photos (when did I, anyway?) but instead share some of my old shots where I tried to employ “rule of thirds”. These photos were taken during a travel to Puerto Princesa, Palawan last December.

One of my stops in the city was a butterfly garden but it was not the butterflies that caught my attention but a dragonfly. I rarely saw dragonflies now in Metro Manila. 😦

Rarity.

Puerto Prinsesa is known as well for its beaches. I had a chance visit the islands around Honda Bay, one of which is Starfish Island where I took these:

Waiting is the name of the game.

Freed.

The “rule of thirds” is a such a joy to practice right? I could probably post tons and tons of practice portfolio. Hah! But for more astounding photos employing the technique, check out Daily Post.

Radial Symmetry

There are several kinds of symmetry, one of which is radial symmetry. Echinoderms a.k.a. sea stars (or the less technically correct term starfish) exhibits this kind of symmetry. Trusty old Merriam-Webster defines such as “the condition of having similar parts regularly arranged around a central axis”.

Some flowers also have radial symmetry, case in point:

Imagine if human faces have radial symmetry. Heh!

Check out Symmetries at Daily Post.

Depth

I couldn’t just let January pass by, right? The week is seeking depth. And so am I.

It would be so wonderful if depth involved such colors or the creatures…

They can be lurkers and predators but it could be worse than having no companion at all… in a place so deep and cold. Visualize Depth.